Essay Prompts for Common App and ApplyTexas

Are you a rising Senior or current Senior?  Then you should start writing your essays!  Here are the essay prompts for this school year.

Apply Texas Essay Prompts

Topic A (Required):

What was the environment in which you were raised? Describe your family, home, neighborhood, or community, and explain how it has shaped you as a person.

Topic B (Required):

Most students have an identity, an interest, or a talent that defines them in an essential way. Tell us about yourself.

Topic C (Optional):

You've got a ticket in your hand -- Where will you go? What will you do? What will happen when you get there?

Common Application Essay Prompts

The 2018-2019 Common Application Essay Prompts are as follows.  You do not have to answer them all!  Each college requires one and most will have additional requirements but will vary from institution to institution.

1. Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.

2. The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?

3. Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?

4. Describe a problem you've solved or a problem you'd like to solve. It can be an intellectual challenge, a research query, an ethical dilemma - anything that is of personal importance, no matter the scale. Explain its significance to you and what steps you took or could be taken to identify a solution.

5. Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.

6. Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?

7. Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you've already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

Want more information on College Admission Essays?